Food: Chicken Fingers

How long has it been since we discussed food? Approximately 18 months or more? I distinctly know the timeframe because, when William George joined the family, we reverted back to our basic menu of a dozen or so different entrees. (#blamethebaby.) We are tiring of the routine and are starting to explore some other options, although nothing overly ambitious or too fancy.

Today's snack/appetizer/simple entree falls squarely into the simple category. Skip deserves full credit for this find, and, in full disclosure, he found this recipe on the back of the Bisquick box. Skip is a big believer in the Bisquick brand, whereas I tend to be a Bisquick snob. The backstory for this recipe is that chicken fingers/nuggets are incredibly popular with the Lindsey demographic, especially the age group 6-and-under. However, the older segment cannot bring themselves to eat another single bite of fast food.

Sidebar: In the past, I relocated for work, and I landed in a state devoid of Chick-fil-A. At the time, CFA was my very favorite, as evidenced by my previous, thrice-weekly visits.  A friend/coworker later traveled to my office for a meeting, and she brought a Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich to me!  She packed it on a freezer pack, put it in her carry-on bag, boarded a plane, and brought me a sandwich!  That is friendship, and I LOVED that sandwich.  (Does this story make me sound like Joey from Friends?  With his affinity for sandwiches?)  I had gone almost a whole year without a CFA sandwich, and I was glad to see my long lost favorite.  On a related note, there were so many times I saw the CFA at the Atlanta airport, like a glass of water in the desert, after a lengthy flight.  Concourse A.  I could have walked to the counter blindfolded.  (For the sake of accuracy, Skip tells me the CFA has been relocated to a different concourse.)

Fast forward several years... I can barely eat a CFA sandwich. In fact, I would rather not. Maybe the quality has been compromised; maybe my preferences have changed; maybe I have had three children who think CFA, McDonald's and Burger King equate to fine dining. I don't know the reason(s), but restaurants of that ilk are no longer for me.  You might be thinking I am one of those healthy types, and you would be mistaken.  Sure, we try.  We have vegetables with every meal, and we always have fruit on hand.  To be honest, I love a good pizza.  Therefore, if fast food is your thing, please don't think I'm judgmental because I will ask for extra cheese on my pizza in a flash.  Would I like to add cheese sticks to my order?  Yes, I think I would.

Basically what I am trying to do is explain to you how Skip could have seen a Bisquick recipe for chicken nuggets as a solution for our family. (And he is going to read this and ask, "What is wrong with Bisquick?") Despite my skepticism, he prepared chicken for our family using the below recipe, and y'all. This chicken is delicious!  Bisquick prejudice aside, this recipe is worth trying.

Ultimate Chicken Fingers

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon butter or margarine
2/3 cup Original Bisquick mix
1 1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt or garlic salt
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, if desired
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cut-up whole chicken (3 - 3 1/2lbs)

1)  Heat oven to 425 degrees.  Melt butter in 13x9 inch glass baking dish in oven.

2) Stir together Bisquick mix, paprika, salt, Italian seasoning and papper; coat chicken. Place skin side down in heated dish. 

3)  Bake 35 minutes.  Turn chicken; bake about 15 minutes longer or until a meat thermometer reads 170 degrees for breasts; 180 degrees for thighs and drumsticks. 

Details:  We remove any and all fat from the chicken -- with surgical precision.  While labor-intensive, I am convinced this is the step that makes the chicken soooo good.  We also add extra paprika and pepper.  Finally, we use metal pans because we like our chicken crispy. 

I promise it's good... Enjoy!